change everything in a razor tight race. the government reports america's unemployment rate rising in the month of october to 7.9%. 171,000 jobs added last month. that is far fewer than the 250,000 many economists say are needed each month to turn the economy around. so that is the big number we have. that's where we start. good morning. i'm bill hemmer. welcome here. morning, martha. martha: good morning bill. what a week. it is friday. welcome everybody, i'm martha maccallum. this jobs report today could be the freshest things people have in their mind in terms of a economic number when they head to the polls in a few days. this short shows it has been a very slow, sluggish recovery. the government reports real unemployment, this is the number we want to focus on, 14.6%. we say that for a good reason. that includes people that are underemployed, even people only worked one day, get counted in the underemployed, part time emed employed. some just have given up. bill: stuart varney, anchor fox business network. good morning to you. start with the more significant number you find there

so negative i worn out the mute button on my own television. it is razor tight race right now. both sides are claiming they have the edge. i talked with ohio senator robb portman, a republican, leading surrogate for the romney team. about how things are shaping up for governor romney eight days away. senator portman, good morning. >> good to be with you again. bill: on sunday you said we're about dead-even in ohio. that would mean governor romney is trailing. is that the case in this state today? >> no. i think it is a sty right now and i think momentum is on our side. in the polling before the debates we were down five or 10 points and we've had a steady movement our way ever since. poll came out on sunday i was referencing showed the race to be dead-even, tied at 49-49. that same poll only a few weeks ago showed us five points down. energy and enthusiasm is on our side. our folks are work harder than ever. grass-roots movement is harder than ever and momentum in is our direction which you always like. bill: in 2004 president bush beat senator kerry by 118,000 votes? is that the mo

harrigan from florida. bill: 11 days now, america. polls show a razor tight rate. the female voters in key swing states will tell you what that is all about. martha: and the senate has announced hearings on the deadly attack on the consulate at libya. bill: we might already be feeling the effects of the so-called fiscal cliff and the massive government cuts meant to ease our ballooning debt. they may be costing american jobs two no leadership that we will face with the fiscal cliff, when tax rates go up on january 1, sequester hits on january 2. or the need to hit the debt president obama has been awol. he has been campaigning a year ago since yesterday delicious and wholesome. some combinations were just meant to be. tomato soup from campbell's. it's amazing what soup can do. will bill: we are only 15 months away from the fiscal cliff. but we are already feeling the economic growth slowing. nearly 1 million jobs are wiped out the year alone. things will get worse if we fail to avert backlit. another 6 million jobs could be lost through the year 200 -- 2014. bill: martha: the senate an

will give the 16 votes electoral to him there. it was razor tight in the past. democrats won by .3 of the overall vote. the president is now up to 65 versus 263. what puts the president in 269? new hampshire. governor romney would have to win the only state left in our scenario on the map, and that is electoral votes in the state of iowa. that is how you get to 69 up to 269. based on the information on polling and polling data that we have, this is possible. martha: there have been folks who have been talking about the scenario for a couple of months. it could be possible. what happens then? if it is to 69 and 269, funky stuff goes on. it was the house of representatives. whoever has the majority coming on the president. whoever has the majority in the senate within vote on the vice president. how about a romney and biden ticket. after all of this? [laughter] martha: i think somebody is going to sell the story on broadway. that's just me. thank you, bill. this story has been getting a lot of attention this week as well. for attack victims are trying to get the massacre declared a terr

razor tight race we have here. in ohio, this is where with the president and joe biden will be later tonight. they're going here to month comery county. daytona, ohio. heavy manufacturing sector in the buckeye state an area president won by six points four years ago. the president starts his day wakes up in palm beach county, a winner in florida by a three point margin. unemployment rate and foreclosure in florida are two of the biggest issues you will find. there is only one state both issues are worse than florida that is out here in the west in the state of nevada. governor romney and paul ryan will be later today. clark county, the city of las vegas. you see how many votes are available. 60-40, president was a winner four years ago. later to no night in colorado a state that went blue in 2008, just west of denver in jefferson county a big concert later tonight. governor romney and paul ryan at the red rocks amphitheater just outside of denver, colorado. as we move over the next 14 days, watch the states in gray. they will determine who is the next president of the united states a